Playoffs Are Here
April 11, 2019 - North American Hockey League (NAHL)
Philadelphia Rebels News Release
No. 2 Jamestown Rebels (35-17-5-3, 78pts) vs. No. 3 New Jersey Titans (31-26-3, 65pts)
at Northwest Arena in Jamestown, NY
Time: 7:00 p.m.
Broadcast: HockeyTV
What You Need to Know:
Season Series: 7-3-1-1
Leading Scorers:
JMT: 56pts, Frye (30g-26a)
NJT: 59pts, Naumovski (16g-43a)
THE PLAYOFFS ARE HERE:
This weekend, the best-of-five series kicks off with Games 1 & 2 being played at the Northwest Arena, home of the Jamestown Rebels. The Titans and Rebels have faced each other 12 times during the regular season, with Jamestown having the favorable edge in the series. The Rebels have tallied 35 goals for and allowed 23 during their regular season series versus the Titans. Jamestown has shutout New Jersey twice during the regular season, once on Dec. 2nd (4-0), and then again on Jan. 19th (2-0). Although, the very last meeting between these two East Division foes was a shutout in favor of the Titans, their only shutout over the Rebels all season. Both shutouts for the Rebels came while Ryan Keane was in net, stopping a combined 63 shots. The Rebels have not missed the post-season in their franchise's history, dating back to 08-09 when they were founded as the Wenatchee Wild. New Jersey has qualified for the playoffs each season they have been in Middletown. The furthest they have ever made it was the Div. Finals in 2016-17 where they lost to the Rebels, 3-2.
MOMENTUM IS KEY:
Both teams were able to win their final game of the regular season. The Rebels split the weekend series with the regular season champions, Johnstown Tomahawks. As for the Titans they won in overtime against the Northeast Generals to earn themselves a split weekend as well. New Jersey ended the regular season with a 4-1 record in their previous five games. Whereas the Rebels posted a record of 2-3 in their last five contests. Good news though for the Rebels is that players are getting back to 100% after being out for a few games. They have also had New Jersey's number as the Titans have not won by more than a goal since game two of the Rebels home opening weekend, 6-3. Winning the first playoff game can go a long way into instilling confidence within the team and the fact that the first two games will be on home ice gives the Rebels that extra edge.
BETWEEN THE PIPES:
Goaltending for the Rebels have been one area in which they have dominated all season. They currently have the 2nd best goalie in the league (Ryan Keane) along with the 8th best (Noah West). New Jersey has had trouble all season with finding consistency in the net. Their go to guy is Brandon Perrone, who finished the regular season with a 16-16-2 record and a 3.18 goals-against-average. To put that in perspective, Ryan Keane's season record is 23-10-1-1 and he finished with a 1.81GAA. Noah West finished the 2018-19 regular season with an overall record of 12-7-4-1 and a 2.29GAA. The Rebels are one of only three teams to have both goalies ranked in the top-ten for GAA (Lone Star, Amarillo).
PLAYERS TO WATCH:
REBELS (F: #22 - Jim Glynn)
The franchise record holder for the longest point streak (12) has over doubled his points from last year (15) and has played in the same amount of games (53). Glynn is 3rd on the team in scoring with 33 points (9g-24a). His 24 assists are tied for second-most on the team with UNO commit Alex Roy. The Lemont, IL native played in eight playoff games last season scoring two goals and helping on another. The 19-year-old finished the regular season tied for 3rd in +/- with 24. In his ten games played against the Titans, Glynn is averaging a point-per-game (1g-9a).
TITANS (F: #26 - Mitch Machlitt)
Machlitt was acquired by the New Jersey Titans when the calendar turned to 2019. Making it his fourth NAHL team he has played for. What is even more remarkable is that he has played in each division. The Maple Grove, MN native started his NAHL career with the Minnesota Magicians in 2016-17. After playing in Sweden the following season, Machlitt came back to the NAHL where he has spent this season bouncing from one team to another. He started this season by playing 15 games for the Aberdeen Wings and then was sent to the Corpus Christi IceRays where he played nine games. Machlitt has played in 48 games this season across three teams, totaling 13 goals and 20 assists. His 33 points puts him 5th on the Titans roster in scoring. The Army commit has played in 8 of the 12 games between New Jersey and Jamestown, picking up three points along the way (1g-2a).
• Discuss this story on the North American Hockey League message board...
North American Hockey League Stories from April 11, 2019
- Knights Announce End of Season Player Awards - Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Knights
- The Captain Commits to University of Wisconsin - Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Knights
- Weekend Preview: Bulls Host Corpus Christi to Begin Playoffs - Amarillo Bulls
- Playoffs Are Here - Philadelphia Rebels
- Throw Back Thursday - Aberdeen Wings
The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
